This is a noona romance, pure and simple. There’s some exposition on what it’s like to be a reporter for a magazine, what it’s like to be an odd job man, what it’s like not to earn a steady living, and what it’s like to Earn a steady living, but all of that really comes in second to the noona romance. And the noona romance…is gooooood. The writers really got what real romance is about. Mutual respect, compatibility, excitement, passion, Actually Spending Time Together. Freakin’ real-deal romance. (And Zero asshole behavior, for which I am always grateful.)

Unfortunately, the drama did the romance So well, that it was all the more disappointing when same said romance faltered in the final quarter.

I'm talking about the Love Octopus (my name for love triangles).

I know they're common in older dramas, and it’s honestly very short-lived here (about two or three episodes), and yet I hated everything about it.

Almost from the moment he appeared on screen, I was ready for Shi Hoon to leave. From being angry at Ji Yeon for believing his secretary’s lie (don't even get me started on the stupidity of that whole plotline) to expecting everything to go back to exactly the way it had been six years earlier (because obviously, nothing could have changed within those six years; neither of them were different people or anything) to ‘pretending’ to be a ‘noble idiot’ and ‘pushing’ Ji Yeon away. (I didn’t even realize he was being a Noble Idiot until Ji Yeon pointed it out. That’s how good he was at just being an ass.) He literally got more and more annoying as the show went on, and by the end, I just wanted him dead.

As for Ji Yeon, she proved to be frustrating in a different, but all too familiar way to seasoned drama watchers. Leading up to the Love Octopus, she was a fabulous female lead. She’s feisty, she’s driven, she’s smart, she’s no-nonsense, SHE'S BLOODY CONSISTENT! Then Mr. Ex showed up, and Ji Yeon went from feisty and driven to timid and indecisive. She lost all sense of personality, spunk, spark, passion, fire, confidence, independence, and I HATED IT.

I’m not saying I don’t understand why it happened. She had been in a relationship with Shi Hoon for a long time, she’d clearly been pretending to be someone she wasn’t when she was with him, and the end of their relationship had devastated her. But we didn’t get nearly enough exposition into their past relationship for her sudden change in demeanor to feel realistic. I just didn’t believe that a woman so self-possessed would fall apart that easily at the sight of her ex.

But here’s where I sing Dong Ha’s praises as he was the only part of the Love Octopus that wasn't terrible. I love him. I love every single thing about him. He’s perfect. He’s wonderful. He’s kind. He’s caring. He’s giving. He’s hard working. He’s all the good things.

He literally saved this drama.

I will admit here that I might be too harsh in my assessment of this part of the story, but I honestly hated watching our female lead go from feisty and self-assured to a complete doormat within the span of seconds. And what made it so much worse is that all of the sexy, romantic, cuteness between our leads all but disappeared once the story hit the 'My ex fiancé is back, and for some unexplainable reason, I feel obligated to go back to him' arc. We were left with this open-ended, will they-won't they ending between our leads, and neither of them deserved that.

I don’t regret sticking this drama out, but I don’t Not regret it either. I mostly just wish we had gotten a less open ended ending. (Would have gone a long way in making up for the ex fiancé subplot.) I still totally recommend this drama to anyone who likes noona romances. Or just anyone who likes romances where there’s actually a compelling reason for the main couple to Be the main couple. Or just anyone who likes nice guys. Because as much as I hate Shi Hoon and feel like the drama really dragged it’s way to the finish after he showed up, I also think this drama was really, really, really well written and really, really, really, Really well acted and has a Fabulous romance between two people who are Actually compatible. If you can put up with two to three episodes of ex-significant-other drama (which is probably perfectly bearable as long as you’re not me) and a pretty open ended ending, this noona romance is killer.